We’re in the throws of summer here in the desert. It’s hot. It’s
muggy. It’s uncomfortable. Makes you wonder why anyone would choose to
live here. By the end of our five months of summer, we have the same
level of cabin fever as our Minnesota cousins (the ones who aren’t
clogging the Arizona roads in mid-winter) in March.
But I suppose whining about the weather won’t solve a thing. And
to be honest, I haven’t had time to look outside most days, let alone
experience the desert heat. I’ve just completed my second Writer’s
Online Workshop—Focus on the Novel. In seven 2-week sessions I submitted
assignments that eventually totaled to the first 12,500 words of a
novel. My butt is sore, my fingers have worn the print off the keyboard,
but I’m on my way.
My thanks to SIG member G. Miki Hayden. She taught my novel class
and provided insights that might have taken me months, if ever, to
stumble across on my own. If you have the opportunity to take one of the
WOW workshops, try to find one that Miki’s teaching. She’s terrific!
And I’ve enrolled in another class. This one will be a killer…or
at least a supreme challenge. It’s five 3-week sessions for which 10,000
words are due at the first day of each session. That’s 50,000 words in
15 weeks. Roughly 80% of a novel to be completed in a little less than
four months. I’ll let you know how it goes.
I spent some time traveling since the Spring issue. Ralph and I
made a short trip to Las Vegas to see Lewis Black perform. I made a
quick trip to Charlotte to see my grandson, Liam, and I attended a
day-long meeting in Washington, D.C. Now I’m home for a while, catching
up on Calliope, projects at work, and thinking about working on that
novel before the deadlines overwhelm me. I haven’t typed a word since my
last class assignment, but I’m thinking about it. The next class starts
in two and a half weeks.
The
Calliope web site is getting a constant flow of
visitors. Ralph added a forum tool so people could make comments. Alas,
none of the
Calliope members have taken the opportunity to
voice their opinions. Please visit the site and tell us what you think.
Go to CalliopeWriters.org.
With the addition of the web site and the change to a quarterly
production schedule,
Calliope subscriptions have been reduced
to $16 per year. For anyone who is still renewing their subscription at
$18, I’m adding an extra issue to their membership (5 instead of 4). I
hope to have our Mensa listing updated this week to reflect the changes.
I’d like to hear from you, the members, about the changes, the
web site, or whatever else you want to communicate. For writers, we seem
to be a silent group. Drop me a note at
Cynthia@theriver.com, or post a note to the web site forum. My job
would be easier if I had some idea what you want from the SIG.
Enjoy the rest of your summer. We’ll be back again for a Fall
issue in October. I’d like to have a “Letters” column next time. All I
need is…you guessed it… some letters!